with ? This prefent life is no other than a play and a vain araufement; but
furely the future manfion fhall be better for thbfe who fear Goo: will they not
therefore underhand ? Now we know that what they fpeak grieveth thee : yet
they do notaccufe thee of falfehood ; but the ungodly contradict the fignsof
G o d *. And apoftles before thee have been accounted liars: but they patiently
bore their being accounted liars, and their being vexed, until our help came
unto them; for there is none who can change the words of G o d : and thou haft
received fome information concerning thofe who have been formerly fent from
himb. If their averfion to thy admonitions be grievous unto thee, if thou canft feek
out a den whereby thoumayeft -penetrate into the inward parts of the earth, ora
ladder by which thou mayejl afcend into heaven, that thou mayeft fhew them a
• fign, do ft, but thy fearch will be fruitlefs ; for if G o d pleafed he would bring
them all to the true direftion : be not therefore one of the ignorant '. He
will give a favourable anfwer unto thofe only who fhall hearken with attention-.
and G o d will raife the dead ; then unto him fhall they return. The infidels
fay, Unlefs fome fign be fent down unto him from his L o r d , we will not believe
: anfwer, Verily.G o d is able to fend down a fign: but the greater part
of them know ft not'. There is no kind of beaft on earth, nor fowl which
fiieth with its wings, but the fame is a people like unto you | ; we have not o-
mitted any thing in the book1 of our decrees: then unto their L o r d fhall they
return5. They who accufe our fignsof fallhood, are deaf and dumb, walking
in darknefs : G o d will lead into error whom he pleafeth, and whom he pleafeth
'thee, -what art thou, 1 never faw any thing more
d&teflable? T o which the figure will anfwer, Why
dofi thou wonder at my uglinefs ? I am thy evil
works 1 ; thou didft ride upon me, while thou waft
in the world, but now w ill 1 ride upon thee, and
thou Jhalt carry me. And immediately it lhall
get upon him; and whatever he lhall meet lhall
-terrify him, and fay, Hail, thou enemy of G od,
thou art he who was meant by (thefe words of the
Koran) and they fhall carry their burthens, See 2.
a They do not accufe thee of faljhood, but tha
ungodly contradift thefigns of G od;J That is, it
is not thou but G od whom they injure by their
impious gainfaying of what has been revealed
to thee. It is laid that Abu Jab l once told Mo-
bammed, that they did not accufe him of fallhood,
becaufe he was known to be a man of veracity,
but only they did not believe the revelations
which he brought them; which occafioned this
paffage 3.
b And thou'haft received fome information concerning
thofe who have been formerly fent ftom him,]
i. e. Thou haft been acquainted with the ftories
offeveral of the preceding prophets; what perfections
they fuffered from thofe to whom they
were fent, and in what manner G od fupported
them and punilhed their enemies, according to
"his unalterable promife 4.
e In this paflage Mohammed is reproved for
his impatience, in not bearing with the pbftina-
cy of his countrymen, and for his indifereet defire
of effefling what G od hath not decreed,
namely, the coRverfion and falvation of all
men 5.
d The greater part of them know it not}] Being
both ignorant o f G od’s almighty power, and
of the ■confequence of what they ask, which
might prove their utter deftruftion.
c A people liKe unto you;] Being created and
preferved by the fame omnipotence and providence
as ye are.
f We have not omitted anything in the book, Sic.]
That is, in the preferved table, wherein God’s
decrees are written, and all things which come to
pafsin the world, as well the moft minute as the
more momentous, are exaélîy regiftred 6.
8 7hen unto their L ord fhall they return;]
For, according to the Mohammedan belief, the
irrational animals will alfo be reftored to life at
the refurreétion, that they may be 'brought
to judgment, and have vengeance taken on them
for the injuries they did one another while in
this world 7. ,
feth he will put in the right way. Say, What think ye ? if thepumfhment of
G o d come upon you, or the hour of the refurreblion come upon you, will ye call
upon any other than G o d , if ye fpeak truth ? yea, him fhall ye call upon, and
he lhall free you from that which ye lhall ask him to deliver you from, if he pleafeth
s and ye lhall forget that which ye afiociated with him*. We have already
fent meffengers unto fundry nations before thee, and we afflicted them
with trouble and adverfity that they might humble themfelves: yet when the
afflidtion which we fent came upon them, they did not humble themfelves ;
but their hearts became hardened, and Satan prepared for them that which
they committed. • And when they had forgotten that concerning which they
had been admonilhed, we opened unto them the gates of all things b; until,
while they were rejoicing for that which had been given them, we fuddenly laid
hold on them, and behold, they were feized with defpair; and the utmoft part
o f the people which had adted wickedly, was cut off: praife be unto G o d ,
the L o r d of all creatures ! Say, What think ye? if G o d Ihould take away
your hearing and your fight, and Ihould feal up your hearts ; What god be-
fides G o d , will reftore them unto you ? See how varioully we Ihew forth the
figns of God-s unityc; yet do they turn afide from them. Say unto them, What
think ye ? if the punilhment of G o d come upon you fuddenly, or in open view';
w i l l any perilh, except the ungodly people ? We fend not our melfengers o-
therwife than bearing good tidings and denouncing threats. Whofo therefore
l h a l l believe: and amend, on them lhall no fear come, neither lhall they be
grieved.: but whofo lhall accufe our figns of fallhood, a punilhment lhall
f a l on them, becaufe they have done wickedly. Say, I fay net unto you, The
treafuresof G o d are in my, power : neither do I fay,. I know the fecrets of
God : neither do I fay unto you, Verily I am an angel: I follow only that
which is revealed unto me. Say, Shall the blind and the feeing be held equal ?
do ye not therefore confider ? Preach it unto thofe who fear that they fhall be
afiembled before their L o r d : they fhall have no patron nor intercefior, except
him ; that peradventure they may take heed to themfelves. Drive not away
thofe who call upon their L o r d morning and evening, defiring to fee his face | ;
it
1 Ye fhall forget that-which ye affociated with
him;] That is, Ye lhall then forfake your
falfegods, when ye lhall be effe&ually convinced
that G od alone is able to deliver you from eternal
punilhment. But others rather think that
this forgetting will be the effeft of the diftrefs
and terror which they will then be in 1 •
b We opened unto them the gates of. dll things
That is, we gave them all manner of plenty ;
that lince they took no warning by their afflictions,
their profperity might become a fnare to
them, and they might bring down upon themfelves
fwifter deftrudion.
How varioufly we jhew forth the figns, &c.j
Laying them before you in different views, and
making ufe of arguments and motives drawn
from various confiderations.
d Suddenly or in open view;] That is, fays al
Beiddwi, either without any previous notice,
or after fome warning given.
0 Drive not away thofe who call upon their
L ord, £®fV.] -Thefe words were occafioned
when the Koreijh defired Mohammed not to admit
the poor or more inferior people, luch as
Amtnar, Soheib, Kbobbdb, and Salman, into his
company, pretending that then they would
come and difeourfe with him K but he refilling
to turn away any believers, they infilled
at leaft that he Ihould order them tP rife up and
withdraw when they came,which heagreed to do.
Others fay, that the chief men of Mecca expelled
all the poor out of their city, bidding them go
to Mohammed; which they did, and offered to
embrace: